The House Appropriations Committee moved forward its FY20 spending bills for affordable housing, community development, and rural development programs on June 4. Both the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) and the Agriculture, Rural Development, and FDA funding bills passed by a 29-21 vote.
The House THUD bill provides HUD programs with more than $13.4 billion above the president’s FY20 request and at least $5.9 billion above FY19 enacted levels. It also clearly rebukes the harmful rent increases, rigid work requirements, and de facto time limits proposed by the president in his past budget requests and in subsequent legislation. Moreover, legislation includes language to halt cruel proposals from the president to evict mixed-status immigrant families from assisted housing and to roll back LGBTQ+ protections.
Subcommittee Chair David Price (D-NC) outlined the bill’s priorities of improving infrastructure and addressing the affordable housing crisis by fully funding housing vouchers and project-based rental assistance and increasing funding for public housing repairs and maintenance, HOME, and lead and carbon monoxide remediation. Subcommittee Ranking Member Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL) praised the bill, voicing support for continued funding for a mobility-voucher demonstration and housing programs serving older adults, people with disabilities, and veterans. He also noted that the major hurdle for passing the bill was the lack of a budget deal providing top-line numbers.
Members of the committee did not offer any amendments related to the housing provisions of either bill.
Read the text of the proposed THUD bill at: https://bit.ly/2YGNmZr
Watch the archived webcast of the subcommittee vote at: https://tinyurl.com/y2922tr2
Read NLIHC’s analysis of the legislation at: https://bit.ly/2HwEvnC
Review NLIHC’s budget chart at: https://bit.ly/2rl7MZC